To Live is to Die
by stickymolly
Summary: Heero & Duo are fighting a losing battle against the MDs. Heero wants to self destruct, and talks Duo into letting him do so. 3x4 in a blossoming romance! Chapter 1 is now revised and rewritten! Chap. 6 is up!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I'm not the owner of Gundam W.

Enjoy the ride. It's full of blood and guts, heh. Don't forget to review the thing either. I worked my butt off to retype this fanfic for you guys, so be happy! ( How am I gonna sit down now!)

"Damn, Heero!" Duo yelled angrily. He slammed his fist on the inside of his cockpit. "There's too many of them, there's no way out." He fixed his violet eyes intently on the suits whizzing about, and took a swing at a couple with the scythe. They all dodged and began firing missiles at him.

Heero glared at the screen. His left side was throbbing with pain. He must've cracked a rib when the Gundam was pummeled by the explosions. Somehow these mobile dolls were equipped with self-activated detonation devices set to ignite whenever they were critically damaged. Several had blown up to his right, after he'd swiped at them with his beam saber.

"Dammit, I'm hit. The left arm is out, and I'm low on fuel." Duo growled. He morosely ran a hand through his braided chestnut hair and sighed as a tiny drop of sweat ran down the side of his face. "_Cowards_!" he yelled at the mobile suits streaking around them at full speed. He grabbed the controls and began a ferocious game of cat and mouse. "Damn, I've got no juice left and now I'm freakin' surrounded by goddamn robots...I'll bet those OZ fools are laughing at us."

Heero opened his eyes. _There's no other way...We're done for. _He put on a stoic face and gripped the controls until his knuckles were white. He hoped Duo would understand him enough to comply with his words.

"Duo..."

The Deathscythe pilot paused in his corroded thoughts to listen to his lover's words.

"Listen to what I have to say."

Duo's breath caught in his chest as he thought he heard a cold chill in the Wing pilot's voice. "I'm listening."

"I'm going to self-destruct."

Duo shook his head, shocked at Heero's words. He narrowly escaped being blown up by a mobile doll while his suit hovered momentarily in space. His stunned expression twisted into a mask of fury.

"What! _NO_!" he shouted. "NO _WAY_!"

Heero snorted. "Come on, it's what I live for. It's what _we_ all live for."

Duo shook his head furiously. "Goddamnit, Heero! We can't just give up now! There's a battle to be fought, even if we don't have any freakin' ammo!"

"No...we _can't_."

Duo saw more shining suits in the distance.

"Damn..." Duo took a deep breath and let it out. "I'm fighting them all, and I'd rather die trying."

Heero's face was hidden by his bangs as he bowed his head. "Duo, I've always admired your spirit and your will to fight. But no matter what, I'm sticking to my own thoughts and ideals. Try to make it out alive." Heero's tone was quiet, but Duo thought he heard a soft plea in his voice. He fought a weak grin on his face. "Heero, you're serious about this, aren't you?"

Heero said nothing. More and more suits poured around them. There was almost 200 mobile dolls hovering there in space, with their guns aimed directly at them. One false movement, and they would all fire. Right now, the people with the remote controllers would be debating whether or not to destroy them, or to capture them as prisoners of war.

"I've made my decision, Duo."

Duo paled and he knew it would be impossible to change Heero's mind in this very moment. He felt desperate, unable to do anything. He helplessly looked into Heero's icy gaze from the screen and trembled.

"Heero, don't do this...I love you too much..."

"I know..." Heero soothed in a low voice. "I know..."

"Heero, let me go with you." Duo clung to the hope that he would change his mind if he put his own life at stake.

"I'd rather you escape and live on without me, then to die and leave your life unfulfilled."

"I _am_ fulfilled, goddamnit! It's because of _you_ that I am fulfilled. You're my life force; if you die, I'll follow you no matter where you end up, whether it's heaven or hell." Duo was shaking with rage. Heero looked so calm and unperturbed, it drove Duo into madness.

"Stop it, Duo. Stop looking at me like that. I'll love you no matter what." Heero reached for the detonation button. "What matters now is this mission. The fate of the human race. The end of the war. The things that will happen at the push of this button. What if I lived and everything went downhill because I didn't self-destruct at a crucial time like this? That's why we are devoid of emotion during battles. I won't let mine get in the way of my mission. My decision is final."

"So be it...But I'm not leaving you to have all the fun, damn you." Duo tried to rid himself of all thought. Torn between the will to fight and the suicide of his lover was beginning to take its toll. He grabbed his detonator.

"Mission complete." Heero murmured. Duo's insides churned as the pilot began the count-down to his death. "Five...four...three...two...one..." Duo watched Heero close his

eyes and push the red button. His finger froze and he heard a horrible scream pierce through the atmosphere as the Gundam exploded.

"_Nooooo!_" Duo's cry of rage and despair was drowned out by the deafening explosions around him as all the mobile suits self-destructed. His insides were being ripped to shreds, he felt bones break and his guts were being hurled about inside his body, his brain was bouncing around inside his skull, he felt a tooth or two chip, and the last thing he saw were the shattered remnants of Wing Zero floating in space, reduced to nothing more than mere scraps of metal.

Everything turned to darkness and he was soon sucked into oblivion.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own Gundam W the characters, or anything. That is all, enjoy the story, and please review it...la la la laaa!

Duo screamed in pain as the paramedic team struggled to keep him still on the gurney. One guy managed to put him in a neckbrace without grazing any of the massive burns on the teenager's chest and shoulders.

"I think his ribs are shattered, we've got bruising and swelling on his abdomen."

"Hold still, kid, I'm trying to help you here!"

"_Make it stop...! God, make it stop!_"

"His femur's broken in half. Kid, we're gonna have to reset it. Greg, strap him down, he's tearing at his I.V. drip."

"I...I can't _breathe_..." Duo whispered, blinking blood from his eyes. His busted lip was swelled to the size of an average water balloon.

"What's your name, kid? Tell me your name...where are you from?"

Duo gritted his teeth and hissed,"My name is Daniel...Daniel Maverick...I'm from..."

_Crack._

"_Aaaaaaaaahhgh!"_

In another hospital, miles away, a team of surgeons were desperately trying to save the life of a brave soldier lying, literally ripped to shreds, on the table. His legs and an arm were shattered to bits, the right side was nowhere to be found. His face was a mass of blood, and numerous patches of skin were burned off his body. Massive head trauma forced the doctors to induce a coma, and they highly doubted he would ever wake up and think 'normal' again. They shaved all the hair off his head, or what was left of it, to stitch together the flaps of bloody scalp that dangled from his skull. He broke both collarbones and five ribs from the sturdy harness that strapped him into the seat of the cockpit, puncturing a lung and causing a hemmorhage. Nurses were forced to clean out the blood bank in order to keep his body well supplied with the life-giving fluid.

"Don't give up, now! Stop the bleeding and prepare him for operation, we need to patch up that lung...we'll probably have to screw and glue all those bones back together, and..." the head surgeon added a myriad of "things to be done" to the growing list. At last he sighed...he had never before lost a patient on the operating table, and he wasn't about to now. This poor kid was looking like a human ragdoll, stitched together by a five year old and made to undergo hellish torture. Luckily, he was already in a coma, injected with doses of anesthetics and tranquilizers.

"Hey, we've got a man from the Sweepers come and bring this freakish thing in," a man outside the operating room called through the glass window. He was carrying an ice chest full of ice. "It looks like a human arm. Got any idea who it might belong to?"

A nurse scurried out and snatched the icechest from his grasp, whipping it open to reveal a grisly, pale, frazzled arm, miraculously intact.

"Thank you. Do you know this man?" she gestured to the prone, lifeless figure on the operating table, who was still pouring blood from his stump of arm.

The man paled. "Uh, no I don't...just take care o' him will ya?" he turned on his heel and hurried away before he could register the gory sight in his brain. Was that even a human? It looked like someone threw him in a meatgrinder.

"It's confirmed doctors, it looks like we found his arm. There will be no need to close off the stump. Let's continue working on him and hope he pulls through..." the surgeon's voice sounded hopeful, but not as confident as he had intended.

Trowa and Quatre were slowly coming down the stairs of his mansion. Trowa was deep in thought, as usual. He was thinking about that recent mission that Heero and Duo had gone off to complete. It had sounded like a decent mission, but they should've been back by now.

Suddenly Quatre doubled over in agony and cried out in terrible pain. He fell to the steps and clutched at his chest, trembling from head to toe, his forehead beaded with fine droplets of sweat.

"Quatre!" Trowa exclaimed as he watched Quatre fall. He quickly knelt down next to the figure teetering on the steps.

"Trowa..." the blonde teenager whimpered as the tall boy rushed to help him up. "I think something's gone terribly wrong in space...Heero and Duo might not've made it out alive...I think Heero is...is..." he buried his face into Trowa's shoulder and began to weep in terror. "I just have the feeling that one of them might be dying, or...I don't know... I just feel their agony...

Trowa wrapped his arms around Quatre, trying to be supportive. "I was just wondering about that mission of theirs...shouldn't they be back by now?"

"They were due back yesterday morning, as a matter of fact." Wufei appeared out of nowhere. Trowa turned Quatre loose and swiftly turned towards Wufei.

"What are you talking about?" he asked coldly, staring out from under the mass of brown hair. His partially-hidden eyes flickered with emerald sparks. "They couldn't've miscalculated...this mission was far too easy for them..."

"I'm just saying," Wufei interrupted, "that maybe this whole thing was a set-up or something...I've got reason to believe so...so why don't you shut your damn mouth and get back to hugging your baby angel?" The Chinese turned on his heel and stalked from the room.

"Wufei is unsettled...Maybe he knows something is wrong." Quatre muttered. Trowa sighed and gave Quatre a helping hand as the boy stood up. "Thank you, Trowa."

Voices were slowly coming into earshot. A door shut somewhere, and then a child screamed in fright or agony. Whichever one it was, he couldn't tell. His brain was too muddled to comprehend anything. Darkness became his world, and it was mostly silent, save for the humming of the machines, and the sound of the respirator breathing pure oxygen into his lungs every few seconds. The sting of the needle in his arm, the cool white sheets, the antiseptic smell... He knew nothing, yet he felt everything...His eyes fluttered briefly, blind and unseeing, as he drifted off to sleep again, the calming effects of the sedatives flooding through his body. He was warm and fuzzy...nothing could hurt him...it was pure bliss...

Duo couldn't move. His arms were lead weights, and his head felt like it was in a steel vise. He heard a discreet sigh of relief somewhere nearby, and someone waved a hand in front of his face. The amythest eyes briefly followed the blurry images before the lids slowly closed, sealing him in another hour or two of deep sleep.

_Was that you, Heero? Please let it be you...please..._

The nurse carefully attached another IV bag to the stand by Daniel Maverick's bed. Daniel Maverick...what a unique name for someone otherworldly. She'd never seen anyone like Daniel before. Young people these days were pretty rare...always going off to war to get themselves killed, or going missing, even ending up as prisoners of earth, those poor kids. They were all babies in her mind. Humankind's hope of the future being killed off before everyone's eyes. Some never even got a chance to experience puppy love. What was the world coming to? Oh well...this was war...

The nurse sat down for a minute, to monitor Daniel. His cast bound leg was elevated on a smooth fluffy pillow, and his toes stuck out from the end, like little pink piglets in a bed. His bad arm was wrapped up with bandages, as well as his bare chest and most of his shoulder. The cut on his head took four staples to close, and that would be removed in about three or four days. The rest of the wounds would take weeks and even months to heal, depending on how well the doctors stitched him up and straightened out his broken bones. He had such a handsome, heart-shaped face, and his long chestnut hair was tied in a knot in the middle, and made to fall to one side, where it laid to rest in the crook of his good arm. Someone had taken the liberty to tie a cute pink ribbon around it, to keep it from tangling. The oxygen mask over his nose and mouth hid most of his features, and she wondered where his family was, if he was in any sports, and if he had a girlfriend. She decided to go to the lounge and drink a cup of mint tea.

Daniel coughed. The nurse blinked in his direction and saw that he was awake...barely. His eyes rolled in their sockets lazily, as he tried to recognize something of his surroundings. His hand appeared to raise itself up to touch his face, but it flopped uselessly onto his chest and stayed there.

"W-where'm I?" he muttered as if his lips were numb, his tongue made of stone.

"I'm your nurse...is there anything I can do for you?" she touched his bandaged hand gently and held it.

"H-heero...wh-where is he...?" "Daniel" made a weak attempt to sit up, but was unable to. His ribs must've kept him from doing so.

"Heero? Who's Heero?" the nurse listened intently and put a restraining hand on his shoulder as he made another attempt to sit up.

"My...friend...is-is he alright?" the teenager valiantly tried to keep his voice steady.

"I'm sorry, Daniel...I don't know who 'Heero' is. I don't think he's here at the hospital."

The boy's long braided hair fell into his eyes as he turned his head away to stare out the small window of the hospital room. "But I want him...where is he?" Tears slowly formed in his eyes and slid down his pale cheeks.

The nurse opened her mouth to say something, but changed her mind. Instead, she reached into a drawer, took out a bottle of clear liquid, and filled up a hypodermic needle with it. She inserted it into the IV bag and slowly squirted the contents of the needle inside. Seconds later, the boy's head drooped sideways again and his breathing slowed. The lady calmly repositioned his head to a more comfortable position and tucked him in. She then left to get her cup of mint tea from the lounge.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: Me no own Gundam W.

Hey everyone, Tommie Gurl is back. Did I sound bored back in chapters 1 & 2? That's what happens when you try typing waaay late at night. Please read this story, and it's okay if you don't like it. I'm very humble about my stories, some of them are utterly pointless... Anyhow, just read the darn thing... What do you guys think so far? This happens to be a rather old fanfic, back when I was in the sixth or seventh grade, and I decided to 'update' the thing using all the knowledge I have now. And so you have chapter 3!

The cobalt eyes stared out from the mass of chocolate brown hair.

"Duo, I understand if you don't want to associate with me. After all, I'm nothing but an emotional burden to you and your missions."

Duo clapped a hand over Heero's mouth. "Hey, stop that. That's _my_ line!" he frowned playfully as Heero put on a quizzical look that read something like "whaddya mean?"

The braided boy smiled and tweaked Heero's nose. Heero ducked, but before he could turn and strut away, Duo grabbed him, wrapped his arms around the puzzled pilot's wiry body, and pulled him close.

He was so warm, and his face was so close to Duo's that the Deathscythe pilot could hear his nose whistling, and feel the warm air pulsating gently from his nostrils.

"Duo...this can't be right...We're--you know,--_guys_..." Heero muttered, trying to shrug Duo's arms from his waist and shoulders.

"That never stopped you did it?" Duo cooed, and ran a finger down Heero's spine, sending the slightest of shivers down the pilot's back. Heero's breathing quickened. Duo observed closely. He was getting warmer.

"Remember, the first time you confessed your feelings for me? In this very spot?" Duo gestured to the present surroundings. A backdrop of graffiti marring the bathroom walls was enough to make the Wing pilot cringe slightly at the sight of such 'immaturity'. He broke in, "And then you spray-painted our initials onto the wall with red spray-paint."

"You remember!"

"Hn...so?"

"So that means..." Duo paused. His mouth curled into a mischievious grin and his violet gaze was unfaltering.

"What?" Heero frowned uncomprehendingly.

"Shh..." Duo hushed, and leaned in as if to whisper something in Heero's ear.

Duo buried his face into the side of Heero's neck, and his hands immediately began roving over Heero's lean figure, exploring, identifying, getting acquainted. Momentarily caught off guard, Heero let out a moan as Duo backed him up against the wall and began making out with him. The braided pilot's warm kisses melted into the Perfect Soldier's skin, and sent little shocks of pleasure shooting to his crotch. Heero gasped, and found his voice.

"The hell are you doing, Maxwell...?" he trailed off helplessly as Duo's warm, moist tongue ran up and down his collarbone, his throat, and up near his ear. Duo's hands found his ass, and before Heero could protest, he felt a tight sqeeze. Not a painful one, but one that felt...wonderful.

"How's it feel, sweetie?" Duo teased quietly, slowly flicking his tongue in and out of Heero's ear.

"...Good..." was all Heero murmured, a split second before Duo's soft lips mashed over his. He felt the braided boy's tongue slipping into his mouth, working its way between his teeth. Heero, lost in the moment, found his hands on Duo's hips, and he was unconsciously grinding himself against the warm body, surroundings totally forgotten. Duo shuddered, and threw his arms around Heero's neck with heated passion. He began kissing him furiously. Heero's quivering hand was sliding its way into Duo's pants...

Just as suddenly as it happened, it was over.

"Hey! What's going on in there!" Doctor J yelled from outside the door. "Is that you, Heero?"

Heero reddened slightly, his forehead beaded with sweat. "Yeah." he answered bleakly. "Stomach-ache." he coughed.

"You still need to finish your training, boy. I don't know what's taking you so long these days. Hmph, lazy kid...!" Doctor J moved away, his metal hand clinking. The two pilots waited until he was totally out of earshot before attempting ot speak again.

"Stupid echoey bathroom..." Heero seethed; his sex drive had flushed itself down the toilet after that horrible scare.

Duo clutched his chest. "Man, I nearly had a _heart-attack_..." He took several deep breaths and clung to Heero's waist.

"Hn." Heero replied. He was back to normal in the blink of an eye. He prised Duo's hands from his waist and scratched his neck gingerly. "I'm gonna go finish my training. See ya 'round." He slowly headed to the door. Duo quietly watched him go.

Later that evening, as Heero was packing up his things and preparing for his next mission, he found a small box in the storage compartment of his Gundam. Frowning, he opened it slowly and found two chocolate truffles inside, along with a strip of black ribbon that Duo sometimes used to tie the end of his braid with. A small handwritten note on the outside of the box read:

XOXO

Always, my love.

-Duo Maxwell

Heero sighed, tucked the ribbon away carefully in the smallest compartment of his cockpit, and slipped a truffle into his mouth when noone was looking. Only one person saw, of course, and he silently ducked into the shadows as the cobalt eyes flitted in his direction.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with Gundam W, except for the fanfics I write, the fantasies I dream up, and the pictures I draw; I don't own anybody here, okay! Just the story!

Tommie Gurl here, I just got back from Durango, after taking a much needed vacation sight-seeing in CO...The first thing I did when I came back was add this chapter. I sure hope you enjoy it! I just happened to write it while listening to Metallica, silly ol' me, letting music influence my tone...'Sokay so far, I stayed up 'til midnight to finish it, so appreciate the hard work!

Wufei stalked to his room. He slammed the door loudly, and then collapsed on his bed, glaring at the ceiling above. He folded his rock-hard fists behind his head and chewed his lip for a minute or two.

What could've happened to Heero and Duo? Where in the hell could they be? He'd noticed that they, well...were becoming rather _intimate_ with each other, and it had been a real turning point for everyone, especially Quatre and Trowa, who were starting to exhibit the same signs of higher affection. Wufei snorted. Sissy stuff. It made him sick to think that Heero would start bending, especially towards that lunatic. Wufei had always thought lowly of Duo Maxwell; he was always annoying Wufei and humiliating him with his crude humor and stupid pranks. Heero was the only one Wufei respected out of their group. Because of Duo, all that was gone; now he was starting to doubt Heero's ability to stand tall and remain stoical in his ways. Now Heero was a failure, a complete weakling for letting his lovey-dovey feelings get in the way of his real decisions.

The Chinese boy growled a curse to himself and punched the wall angrily. He hated things he didn't understand, and this whole mess was one of them.

He again reviewed the possiblity of a set-up. They never failed missions, except for the occasional botch from Duo, but otherwise, Heero's missions were always completed on time, without any evidence, and he even returned at the exact time he said he would. He was _that_ good at keeping promises. Duo on the other hand, was rather unpredictable, and he had an affinity for getting sidetracked. Often he would return scruffy, disheveled and broke, obvioiusly having gambled somewhere before returning. On one occasion, he even came home, singin' drunk. Wufei never had so much as a drop of alchohol in his life, and he wasn't about to start now. He had too many things at risk, mainly his pride and poise.

Who could've set them up? OZ, of course. OZ was the enemy. Destroy OZ. Wufei sat up on the bed, folded his legs, and began his meditation.

Trowa and Quatre were sitting on the couch in the den, silently gazing at the flickering images on the large flatscreen TV in front of them. The faint smell of chai tea hovered in the atmosphere, and the only sounds in the room were that of the TV, the occasional sip, or shifts in movement.

Trowa's mind wandered. It was the first time his mind had ever wandered, it seemed. He was thinking about everything at once. Heero and Duo, Wufei's sudden outburst, and the taste of sweet tea on his tongue. It was bliss to be sitting here, calmly sipping hot tea on a leather sofa next to Quatre. He didn't dare look Quatre too much in the eye. For some reason, he felt that the boy would read everything about him, just by gazing at him with those gentle blue eyes, shaded by soft, platinum blonde hair.

Trowa crossed and uncrossed his legs, and moved his hand to scratch behind his ear. He examined the stitching on the sofa. He watched a boy fall off his bicycle on TV.

"Trowa...are you okay?"

Trowa almost flinched at the sound of his name. Quatre had said it in such a way that it was totally directed at him, and him alone. Strangely enough, it didn't feel like an intrusion. In fact, the tall boy was almost relieved that Quatre had asked him such a question. Was he really being abnormal? He looked from the corner of his eye at the blonde teenager and noticed that Quatre was looking concerned, even a little fearful.

"It's nothing." Trowa answered. Damn. He had answered too hastily. Maybe he should just leave the den and head upstairs to bed...

"You look a bit flushed. Are you feverish?" Quatre leaned in a bit closer to examine Trowa's features. Trowa leaned away instinctively, and suddenly felt Quatre's hand on his forehead.

The softness of it, the warmth... Trowa felt a shiver run through his body, even though he felt like he was burning up inside. He held his breath. What was wrong with him? He didn't feel nauseated or feverish, just jittery. About what? He instantly blamed the tea. Too much caffeine, too much energy...

Quatre's voice erased all his thoughts. "You're a bit warm..."

"I'm fine." Trowa noticed the slender hand was now touching his face, his ear, the back of his neck. It drove him crazy. It felt wonderful, it was exactly what he needed...the touch of another human being on his skin. It was a missing piece of the puzzle.

"Trowa?" Quatre now sounded surprised. Trowa opened his eyes, realizing just now that they were closed, and that his own hand was now pressing Quatre's to his cheek. Heart pounding, he let go of Quatre's hand and swiftly got up from the sofa. "I'm going to bed now," he said quietly, and departed, leaving the dumbfounded boy on the sofa.

In a faraway colony, doctors had just finished operating on Patient no. 807397. Swathed like a mummy, the figure on the table was hardly recognizable; his face was cleansed of blood, but the bandages and the oxygen mask made it hard to distinguish his features. Not a muscle moved, save for the steady up and down movement of his chest. His shoulder was swathed completely in bandages, with a darkening patch of blood forming where the stump was located. His arm lay seperately in a pack of ice, lifeless and gray in a stainless steel pan. His body was connected to monitors and several bags of liquid substances essential for his survival.

"Hmm...We have a good chance of reattaching his arm...the problem is, if we do it manually, he's going to take years to heal and rehabilitate. Have you identified him yet?"

"No, Doctor. We haven't been able to trace any records to either Earth or the colonies. I'm afraid he's lost, practically a _nobody _in this world..."

"Anyhow...I will perform the surgery. And I will do so using my latest method."

"But Doctor...it might be too late. Will he even adapt to it?"

"If he's been able to pull through this far, he's more than likely to adapt. I'm going to get ready now."

"If you insist. If it goes wrong, don't say I didn't warn you."

"I will accept full responsibility of this patient. I understand what you say, but this will be my own doing."

The doctor briskly walked into the room where he scrubbed his hands down, drew on a fresh set of scrubs, and snapped on a pair of surgical gloves. Wrinkling his nose at the latex smell, he directed the nurses and doctors to prepare the patient and get the tools ready. As soon as everything was set, he took a long look at the mangled arm in the pan by the operating table.

"Dispose of the arm. We won't be needing it from here."


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I keep repeating myself over and over...I don't own Gundam W!

Tommie Girl here! Sorry to have kept you guys waiting on Heero's condition. This chapter has new details on what's up with our critically wounded war hero and his death-defying lover, Duo Maxwell. Both have survived, and just you wait to hear what Heero underwent since the last chapter! Enjoy Chapter 5.

"H-heero...no...please, don't be dead...Heero, please...I love you..."

The faint moans coming from Room no. 206 were faint and pleading. However, there was nothing the nurses could do to help the poor boy lying defeated on the hospital bed, wrapped in bandages and pouring fearful sweat from the pores of his slender body. The bangs hanging over his forehead were now damp and stringy, his unbraided hair amassed over one shoulder like a hot, heavy blanket. His head tossed from side to side deliriously, and his body burned with fever. He was now off the oxygen, but he would need it again soon, if he developed a respiratory infection.

"Daniel? Daniel, wake up! Talk to me!"

Duo simply refused to respond to their calls, as if he were trying desperately to keep from waking up...as if he didn't want to believe in the nightmare of reality...

He felt drugged to the max. Everytime he woke up, it seemed, they immediately injected him with another dose of morphine, or whatever it was that..._yawn..._

"Poor kid. The only thing I can do for him now is to sponge him down, change his bandages, and make sure he doesn't die in his sleep." One curly-haired nurse remarked one afternoon as Duo was administered another dose of powerful painkillers. "Of course, I'm exaggerating," she added after a brief moment.

"I have a son his age back at home." an eavesdropping woman announced loudly. " He sure ain't going to war to get himself blown to shreds. He's going to become a doctor, so he can sew up the people who do get blown to shreds. If only kids these days would amount to _something_ decent, we wouldn't have to be worrying about families getting blown up and stuff like that."

The curly-haired nurse opened her mouth to say something, but then she was interrupted by a small but gentle voice behind her. She turned around.

"That's not necessarily the case." a young lad with platinum blonde hair was standing by her elbow. "_All_ young people can amount to _anything_ and still do good deeds for humankind. Even if it means risking their lives, fighting for what they believe in." His eyes, though soft in tone, were filled with unfathomable confidence.

"Well, I never...!" the woman said incessantly, but was cut off by the arrival of a tall, thin young man. His long, brown bangs hid most of his face, and he was dressed in a navy blue trench coat reaching to his shins.

"Hello," he said quietly. "We came to pay a visit to our dear friend. Have you seen this face lately?" he held up a small 5x7 photo of a laughing boy with a sparkling amethyst gaze and chestnut-brown hair, braided into a long, thick rope that hung down his back. Beside him stood a wiry young male of about the same age with piercing eyes and a stony face. His arms were folded across his chest and he seemed to be ignoring the happy teenager prancing along next to him. They appeared to be celebrating a special occasion; the two were dressed in formal tuxedoes and the braided boy was holding a glass of champagne in one slender hand.

"What is this?" The nurse wanted to know. "Who are you?" She refused to let go of the photo until the tall boy gently prised it from her fingers.

"Please. This is urgent, and we swear it won't take long." the blonde insisted. "It's just that...he's one of our closest friends, and he really needs to be with us right now. We are so concerned for his well-being, and it would crush him to hear that we wouldn't be allowed to visit..."

"No visitors at this time, sweetie." the nurse broke in. "As of right now, he's fast asleep. How could he possibly hear you or sense you're right next to him? I think it's best that you wait for him to get better, then try talking to him then. Good day...!" she turned around to walk away, but the tall kid was already standing in her way. "He's asking you _nicely_." he said, with evenness and clarity. "This is all we're ever asking of you."

Speechless, the nurse finally got the message, and told them the number of Duo Maxwell's room.

"Thank you so much!" the blonde boy smiled a sweet, angelic smile, and for a split second, the nurse thought she spotted tears sparkling in his eyes. She silently watched them depart for Daniel Maverick's aka Duo Maxwell's room.

Heero Yuy's heartbeats were slow...rhythmic. As if at any given moment it would cease to stop beating and remain motionless forever. However, that was hardly the case. For now, _he_ was taking care of the Perfect Soldier as if he were worth his weight in gold...or gundanium alloy. His name was Dr. Fleishcer, and he was in charge of repairing the boy's mangled body using his latest bit of technology: regrowth and regeneration, a technology that was discovered earlier on, but it was terribly unrefined and tedious to work out. It had taken decades of dedicated research to actually attempt to grow a single baby lab rat inside a clear glass tank full of liquid; an artificial womb. The whole affair was undertaken as a secret operation. The government would go ballistic literally and figuratively if they were ever found out, for obvious reasons, and Dr. Fleishcer was hell-bent on keeping everything top-secret, confidential, classified, and as many other words which fit that category. This was his life's work, and he wasn't going to let it go without a tremendous fight. Right now, however, Dr. Fleishcer was more interested in observing the naked human form floating inside. He sighed contently, and turned to his colleague, Dr. Muller.

"Any drastic changes in temperature?"

"No sir."

"Good. Keep it at that. We don't need any foolish mistakes at this critical point in time. It will be a few weeks before his arm will be ready to self-stabilize. I put you in charge of that job. You got it?"

The young scientist nodded curtly. "Yes, sir." he replied, and went back to his calculations. Dr. Fleishcer turned back to the glass tank, bubbling with clear, warm fluid. The figure inside had grown back most of his dark brown hair, and it was silky and as rich as chocolate due to the abundance of vitamins. The veins and tissue in the new arm were formed, as delicate as can be. A breathing mask supplied oxygen to the body, a feeding tube provided all the nutrients for his developing limb. The rest of his wounds seemed to be healing rapidly, with little or no scarring. Broken bones slowly knitted together and grew back stronger than before. It was a masterpiece. It was perfection. Brilliance at its finest! Dr. Fleischer smiled proudly.

"My, Heero. It's been so long since I've seen you. You were only a pint-sized brat the last time Dr. J came to visit. He raised you to be even more despicable. Then again, that probably wasn't his fault; silly old man. Thanks to me, you've got a second chance at life, a second chance to breathe, a second chance to experience the wonders of the human world...Trust me, you haven't seen anything yet. I'll show you what a real scientist is supposed to do." the scientist sank into a nearby chair and folded his arms behind his head, crossing his legs into a comfortable position.

"Am I ever the genius!" he said loudly to no one in particular.

Back in Duo's room, Trowa and Quatre were sitting on either side of the hospital bed. Poor Duo was still out of it, unfortunately, but his temperature had gone down and was now relaxed for the moment.

Wufei showed up two hours later. "How's he pulling through?" he asked. Trowa had called him earlier, to tell him the news. They had finally located Duo, he was seriously injured, but he was alive. Heero, most unfortunately, was still MIA.

Quatre nodded. "Fine. The nurses say he'll probably be out for another two to three hours, depending on how much pain medication he's on. That stuff sure knocked him out." He sleepily laid his head down on the bed by Duo's hand. Trowa and Wufei looked at each other silently and didn't say a word for another five minutes or so.

"How'd you find him?" Wufei asked at last.

"We hacked into the hospital's computer network. We toggled with the possibility that Duo might use his initials as a key to his whereabouts by choosing an alias that used the same initials, 'D' and 'M'. Once we had tracked down several hospitals with possible candidates, we simply chose the hospital closest to the site where their mission took place, which happened to be here. Once things fell into place, it wasn't that hard to find him."

Quatre raised his head. "But first we had to convince ourselves that they were alive. It's risky travelling these days, especially if you're a Gundam pilot in hiding. So we contacted a member of the Sweepers Group to haul us over here. It was way easier than being a stowaway on some shuttle, and creating fake ID would've taken too long. However, I'd still rather use my real name and ID no matter what the case..." the blonde muttered to himself.

"We also could've stolen our own shuttle." Trowa added.

"Hn. I see." Wufei nodded his head and gazed at the battered Duo, whose eyes were now rolling under his eyelids. He was probably dreaming. Wufei picked up the clipboard to check out Duo's status.

"Serious condition. This guy won't be moving for weeks. " Wufei replaced the clipboard to its spot and took a seat next to Trowa.

"Why aren't we looking for Heero? We found Duo now, didn't we?"

Trowa sat quietly, then spoke. "I have a hunch that Heero could be alive, but barely. His chances of making it out alive are slim, due to his suicidal nature and his inflexible ways. The only thing that would stop him would be if he lost all his chances for suicide. And then there's the fact that he doesn't self-destruct without a reason. It has to be part of his mission, or else he wouldn't do it. It would also have to have come from his mentor for him to self-destruct. He just doesn't take orders from anyone."

"Even Duo, apparently."

"I'm afraid it appears so. It just so happens that he was caught up in the middle of it, whatever plan Heero had."

"Must've been a terribly easy choice, judging by the way Duo came out."

Quatre sighed sadly. "We'll get all the answers when he wakes up. I hope to God we find Heero. My heart aches from their pain. I want them to stop hurting." Quatre gazed hopefully at Duo one last time before falling asleep with his head resting on the white sheets, platinum blonde hair falling around his baby-round cheeks.


	6. Chapter 6

"Hey, Duo, there's something I've gotta do out back. I'm gonna need you as an equipment manager." Heero called from the kitchen. He was on his second cup of coffee, and was reading a tech manual. Something about...lawn mowers?

Duo didn't understand. Heero was too smart for simple gadgets like lawn mowers. It didn't take a genius to figure out how a lawn mower worked. But Duo simply did as he was told, and soon he was toddling after Heero out to the small shed out back.

Something about the Wing pilot's gait told him that something was up with him this particular morning. He seemed quieter than usual, and intent on something. It couldn't be lawn mowers. Why the heck did he need help with a friggin' lawn mower! Duo was in the middle of his escape plan. But as soon as he stepped into the shed it was too late for him to escape; from the second the heavy door swung shut and locked, he knew Heero set up a trap.

Duo nervously fiddled with a few random tools at hand and noticed with a chill that Heero's footsteps had stopped directly behind him. He felt two icy cobalt eyes upon him, boring into his back. He tensed as he felt a small tug on his braid. The long, thick brown hair came partially undone and the loosened end fell around his body. With a shudder, he felt the pressure of two strong hands upon his hips. He froze as Heero slowly ground himself into his backside provacatively. Heero's tongue came out and licked Duo's ear.

"Heero..." Duo murmured. "What are you gonna do, rape me or someth...?" His words were instantly smothered as a calloused palm drowned out his voice; he let out a muffled moan as Heero tilted Duo's head back, exposing his neck, which he licked and sucked on with increasing passion. His other hand unfastened the front of Duo's shirt to slide inside.

Duo gasped at the feeling of Heero's finger teasing his nipple, and the pilot let go of his throat, which he had been grazing his fingertips over, only to use that hand to pull Duo's neatly tucked-in shirt out of his pants. His fingers found the zipper of his black form-fitting trousers, and slowly unzipped it. The sound was deafening and seemed to take an eternity.

Heero suddenly whipped Duo around to face him and before Duo knew it, he found himself against the wall of the shed. Heero peeled the rest of Duo's shirt off and kissed him full on the mouth. He then nibbled downwards, towards his chest, and bit down softly on Duo's nipple to tease him again, using a his tongue to create different sensations. Duo moaned once more, hair hanging sexily everywhere, his naked torso glistening with Heero's saliva. He didn't care how many gallons of spit Heero drooled on him, he wanted pleasure! Duo pushed Heero's head lower and lower until his face was even with his groin. Heero grinned at Duo, and being the despicable brat he was, he didn't take Duo's pants off all the way. Instead, he stood back up and grazed his fingers with even pressure over the rock-hard lump forming in Duo's pants. Duo didn't know how much longer he could take it, he was sick of foreplay, he was going to explode...

"Quit that!" Duo cried, flailing his arms in exasperation. "Cut to the point, you greedy bastard!"

At this, Heero let go of Duo, his face hardening. Duo knew he had said the wrong thing, he was totally in for it now, oh god, _no_...! He tried to make a break for the door but Heero grabbed him, and picking him up, hauled him to a nearby table and laid him down as gently as if he were a bag of sand.

"Oof!" Duo grunted, and immediately tried to scramble away. Too late. Heero had decided to cut to the point after all.

The cobalt-eyed pilot silently began yanking all of Duo's clothes off, starting with the shirt, then the pants, and the shoes, all the while wearing a rather perverted grin on his face. Duo laughed like a maniac. All hell broke loose as Heero unzipped the front of his pants, pulled off the last remaining article of clothing on Duo's body, and pulling Duo closer by the hips, he positioned the braided pilot's legs over his shoulder and rammed into him...hard.

"AAAAGH!"

Heero froze as if he'd been hit by a frying pan, eyes wide in surprise. "What!" he shouted over Duo's yelling. "What did I do wrong!" He slid out of Duo and back in again, gasping involuntarily at the intense pleasure. Duo moaned and tears of pain jumped to his eyes. "Heero, you idiot, that _hurts_! What are trying to do, _rape_ me?" he cried. "That's how the gang-bangers do it...owww..."

"I'm sorry...I've never done this before..." Heero muttered, and began again, this time more slowly. Duo gritted his teeth in agony. "You could've practiced that part some more before trying it on someone like me...! Oh god, owww..."

"You told me to cut straight to the point, so I did!" Heero shot back, using his Death Glare. Duo opened his mouth to protest, but Heero jolted him with an extra hard thrust and Duo let his head flop back with part pain, part pleasure, but mostly pain.

They were done in a matter of minutes. Heero helped Duo put his clothes back on and helped him ease up to a sitting position.

"I'm not going to sit for a week," Duo groaned. "I didn't think you'd come onto me that _hard_...Jesus _Christ_...!" he rubbed his poor ass.

"I'm sorry, Duo." Was all Heero could say. It seemed he was apprehensive now, and even insecure. Clearly, this was something he still needed to explore and get used to. Gently, he took Duo in his arms and held him close. Duo closed his eyes and put his ear against Heero's chest, listening to his rapid heartbeat. He allowed Heero to gently stroke his soft brown hair and to kiss him on the forehead. Then he eased away from Heero and looked him in the eye.

"Heero...I love you so much."

Heero let himself smile for the first time. "I know...I know..." he leaned in and kissed Duo passionately on the lips. "I love you too, Duo. With all my heart." There was a brief pause as they began making out, pure and simple. Duo suddenly remembered something and abruptly pulled away from Heero with a loud, wet smooch.

"Are you still going to mow the lawn?"

"I never mow the goddamn lawn. We'll make Wufei do it." Heero picked Duo up easily from the table and carried him back to the house.

Duo's underwear, of course...!


End file.
